idolpro | Eclipse's Heart Game ☉ Session #4

You drift like you're floating in water. It's almost relaxing, actually. As long as you don't think too hard that what you're floating in may be bottomless, because under you lies only a deep darkness that only the ocean can provide.

Then something grabs you and drags you deeper, down, down, down into the abyssal depths. You can't breathe, but that's not on the forefront of your mind now, is it?

There is a mounting sense of anxiety and dread.

Who do you want to become? Will you even get to see tomorrow? What if all roads lead to ████████? Can you still stay '███'? If people see the ████ you, will they think less of you? Will they feel cheated?

You want to live. Even if it's a ███, even if your hands must be covered in █████, you want to live. You want to be '███'.

Finally, a voice pierces through the darkness. It's a woman's voice.

"My, how unfortunate. Your journey ends before it even begins."

"... Just kidding. That would be terribly boring! I suppose I can do the boy a favour just this once."

You feel someone grab your arm and pull you up to the surface.

...

When you come to, you are standing somewhere else.

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. . . Fine.

[And he holds out the box]

If you can't, then we'll leave it with the NPC in the starting zone until we find Eclipse.

That way it's at least out of this building.

[He nods and will take the box.]

I'll take a look at it. If I can't find a way to destroy it, that's probably a good spot. At least until we can investigate the mud.

There might be a good spot there. Dangerous probably means there's already trauma there anyway.

. . . What mud?

[He didn't talk to the NPC at all, my friend]

....the ghost girl talked about it. Sounds like that's where the worst stuff is gonna be.

You...do know you can ask Eclipse for help, right? He's been pretty forthcoming on dangers and where you are. [He gestures to Mama.]

If he wanted to be really helpful, he'd tell me where he is.

Eclipse is way too guarded a person to do that.

By that logic, what reason does he have to keep me from places he doesn't want me seeing?

Because people are contradictory.

Sometimes people are afraid to let people close to them, but often the people who are most afraid are the ones most desperate for human connection, to have someone they can trust to be close to.

[He holds up the box.]

He's been hurt. He's afraid of being hurt again. But he doesn't want to be afraid. He doesn't want to keep people at arm's length.

One part says no, the other part yes, so its up to us to figure out the path through the no to the yes. Its like when you have a wall built around a city. You let everyone in, and someone is gonna want to burn it down. So you let in those willing to go through the effort of being allowed through the gates.

Edited 2021-01-30 05:35 (UTC)

[

. . .]

Fine.

You handle the box.

[Look at this boy, being emotionally competent.]

I'll take care of it.

[Lowers it down.] Just saying. Talking to the gatekeepers might help a lot.

Yeah, yeah.

I'm going to go find the mud.

[Look, see. He was listening.]

Be careful and good luck.

It's a metal box that wouldn't look out of place in Heart Soldier's dorm. There's a huge padlock closing it shut.

When you pick it up, you can get an impression of its contents. What's inside is -

Disillusionment (you shouldn't have put faith in them); anger (why did you have to pay for their actions?); regret (maybe you should have just said nothing); guilt (you aren't kind or gentle); inadequacy (you are not and never will be noble of heart); loss (you never belonged) -

Probably, there are many reasons this box should stay locked.

[Those are CERTAINLY A LOT OF FEELINGS THERE, Eclipse.]

[Okay, but when he's done talking to Intensity, he's going to go to that Separate Room because he needs some info before he goes about wrecking this box.]

The room has now been tidied up, so at least it doesn't smell and feel awful, but it's still pretty bare.

Eclipse's Heart Game ☉ Session #4

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